Ćevapčići - bbq skewers

This weekend I tasted summer. The weather was great and we had our first barbecue of the year. M. had invited his fellow graduates to celebrate. In Sweden it is custom with barbecues that every one brings their own food and you share a little. The host provides the basics, such as a salad, some bread and maybe some sauces.
Since I had to work on the day of the barbecue I couldn't make and prepare as much as I wanted, but I made a few things anyway. The evening before I prepared some ćevapčići. When I came home on the day of the barbecue H. proposed to help me and together we prepared a huge salad, roast potatoes (recipe on my blog here) and tsatsiki, while talking about all kinds of things. It's such a nice thing to cook together! She brought some fantastic cookies by the way, for which she promised me the recipe. I'll make them and post about them later!



Ćevapčići (makes around 10 skewers)

sunflower oil
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 teaspoon Vegeta or salt
500 g minced lamb
500 g minced beef
1 egg white
1 tablespoon paprika (NL: paprikapoeder)

* heat the oil in a small frying pan and add the onion and garlic and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of Vegeta or salt
* fry on medium low heat for 5 minutes, until the onion and garlic are soft and getting some colour (adjust the heat so they don't get brown)
* put the egg white in a large bowl and whisk it a little with a fork
* add the minced lamb and beef, the paprika and the onion and garlic mixture
* mix all this together with your hand (I always use one hand to do this, so the other hand can hold the bowl and stays clean for sudden phone calls or a sudden itch)
* slightly wet a tray or plate (I needed two plates), as this prevents the meat from sticking
* for the same reason prepare a small bowl of water to dip your hands in before rolling each little roll
* make rolls of around 2 cm thick and 5 cm long and put them on your prepared tray or plate (yes, now you need two hands, so let that phone ring and ignore those itches)
* cover with plastic foil and place in the fridge for an hour, or overnight, so they don't fall apart
* soak wooden barbecue pens in water for at least 30 minutes, so they don't burn
* make kebabs by sticking the 4 rolls onto a stick, not through the length, but through the sides of the rolls (see picture)
* roast on the barbecue until they are done, 5-10 minutes (they should not be red or pink in the middle)

I really liked these and so did everyone else (or so they said) - I can really recommend them!

Prijatno (eat well)!

Butternut squash soup with garlic bread

When you are reading this, I am either on the flight to Madrid, or on the transfer flight to the south of Spain. Or perhaps I am drinking a glass of cold white wine on Malaga airport, waiting for my mum and sister to meet me there. Maybe I am already in our rental car, trying to figure out how to get to our first hotel. It is also very probable that while you are reading the recipe for this nice soup, I am just about into dive into the sea, or that I am meandering the streets of Granada. Who knows!
I'm so much looking forward to see my mum and sister and feel so lucky that I can make this journey with them. While I'll be doing that, you can make this wonderful, colorful soup to brighten your day.



Butternut squash soup (serves 4)

(olive) oil
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 potato, peeled and chopped
1 butternut squash, seeds removed and chopped but no need to peel! (NL: flespompoen)
1 L water
1 bouillon cube, vegetable or chicken
1 teaspoon salt
pepper
1 teaspoon paprika powder
1 teaspoon ground coriander
handful of chopped coriander or parsley
to serve: (Turkish) yogurt or crème fraiche, paprika powder and sea salt

* fry the onion and garlic until soft, but not brown
* add potato and butternut squash and fry for a minute
* add 1 L water and 1 bouilloncube, 1 teaspoon salt, pepper, 1 teaspoon paprika powder and 1 teaspoon ground coriander
* bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the butternut squash is tender
* puree with a hand mixer (NL: staafmixer) until smooth
* stir in a handful of chopped coriander or parsley
* serve with (Turkish) yogurt or crème fraiche, a dusting of paprika powder and some flakes of sea salt

The great thing with butternut squash is that it's not necessary to peel them. And if you've ever peeled pumpkin, you know it's a pain in the ***.

Garlic bread

bread
olive oil
flakes of sea salt
1 clove of garlic, peeled and cut in half

Rub a few slices of bread with a little olive oil and sprinkle some salt on it. Put on a hot grill and turn when it's got some color. When done, rub some garlic on the surface of the bread. This is a very nice way of serving some bread that's not super fresh anymore.

PS: a friend asked if I took all the pictures of the food myself and the answer is YES!

Prawns with homemade mayonnaise

Up until a few years ago I didn't like prawns. In fact, I didn't like anything that could crawl or still had legs, claws or antennas.
Then I started going to this tapas place around the corner of my old house in Amsterdam. I would go there with either my roommate and best friend A. and/or my boyfriend M. Both of them were crazy about the gambas al ajillo. With fascination and disgust I looked at those little animals and watched how they were devoured. The head was jerked off, and then the rest of the skin. Taking the bowels out and then, finally, they could eat this poor little pink thing. Not so appealing, but the smell of garlic and oil..hmmm.
Finally I took a bite. Since then I am sold and now I skin these little mama's without any scruples what so ever.



I also love eating them plain, with some homemade mayo, toasted bread with butter and some lemon juice. Just put everything on the table, and let everybody clean the prawns themselves.
Take 100 g of unpeeled, cooked prawns per person.

Mayonnaise (around 1 cup)

1 egg yolk
1 small teaspoon Dijon mustard
2,5 dl sunflower oil
little bit of lemon juice
salt and pepper

* mix the egg yolk with the mustard with a (electric) whip (NL: garde)
* add just a drop of oil and mix
* add another drop and mix and continue this way until it's getting thick and creamy
* dribble in the rest of the oil slowly while whipping continuously (I tend do it too fast and have to start over - very annoying)
* stir in some lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste



Tips:
* don't use olive oil for your mayonnaise, or use half olive and half sunflower oil, because otherwise the olive oil flavour will dominate the mayonnaise too much.
* make sure all the ingredients of the mayonaise are on room temperature
* you can use frozen prawns if you skin them while they are still frozen. This way they won't get soggy (I got this tip from my 'aunt-in-law' who is a food journalist/writer and great cook)

Feta cream / hummus

Back to my Moroccan plate. You got the couscous recipe earlier and now I will let you in on the sauces. A thick cream of feta, a nutty and earthy hummus and some harissa form the ideal company to some couscous or serve well as a dip with other dishes.



Harissa is a hot North African sauce made of chillies and garlic. In Morocco it's served with couscous and other food. I found it in the regular supermarket, otherwise a North African store will have it. You can substitute it by sambal, or hot ajwar.



Feta cream (half bowl)

The feta cream is made by mixing 100 g of feta with a few tablespoons of Turkish yogurt. Put it together in a bowl and mix into an almost smooth paste with a fork.

About the feta: there is feta and there is feta. Feta should be made of sheep and/or goat milk, but definitely not of cow milk. Check the ingredients. Real feta might be a bit more expensive, but there is such a big difference between the real feta and the fake, that it's worth paying a little bit extra.
Turkish yogurt is almost like mascarpone: it's very thick and creamy. Can be substituted by ordinary full fat, thick yogurt.

And then the hummus. I tried making hummus with my handheld mixer (NL: staafmixer) but that didn't work. My mixer is not very strong though, so you could try it and maybe it works. I have a little food processor that is more like a small chopping machine that did the trick (wish I had a real machine though..)



Hummus (makes a full bowl)

1 can chickpeas (400 g) (NL:kikkererwten, S: kikärtor)
juice of 1/2 small lemon
3 tablespoons tahin (sesamepaste)
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
8-10 tablespoons of olive oil
3-4 tablespoons of liquid from the chickpeas

* place all the ingredients in the mixer bowl
* mix it
* stir and mix again
* repeat until it has become a smooth paste, add more olive oil/liquid if necessary
* drizzle a little olive oil on top before serving, or some paprika powder

If you have the time: make the hummus a day in advance. That way the flavours work together to get an even better tasting substance.

The hummus and feta cream also serve very nicely as a snack, with for example some toasted pita breads or sliced red bell peppers and sticks of cucumber.